Sam Rany, Ph.D.

By Colin Meyn and Kuch Naren - July 30, 2013 In the month leading up to Sunday’s national election, the face of Prime Minister Hun Sen was omnipresent in Cambodia. Every few meters along the main boulevards in Phnom Penh, Mr. Hun Sen, depicted on Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) campaign banners, smiled and waved at passersby. In the provinces, the prime minister was shown on large roadside billboards, folding his hands in respect to villagers or seated in a rice paddy and wearing a krama . In his speeches in the months leading up to the election, Mr. Hun Sen placed himself at the center of the CPP’s campaign platform. រយៈ​​​ពេល​​​មួយ​​​ខែ​​​មុន​​​ការ​​​បោះ​​​ឆ្នោត​​​ជាតិ​​​ ​កាលពី​ថ្ងៃ​អាទិត្យ​​នេះ មុខ​​​របស់​​​លោក​​​នាយក​​​រដ្ឋ​​​មន្ត្រី​​​ ហ៊ុន សែន គឺ​​​ឃើញ​​​មាន​​​នៅ​​​គ្រប់​​​​​​ទី​​​កន្លែង​​​​​​ក្នុង​​​ប្រទេស​​​ កម្ពុជា​​​។ នៅ​​​តាម​​​បណ្ដោយ​​​មហាវិថី​​​នានា​​​ក្នុង​​​រាជ​​​ធានី​​​ភ្នំពេញ​​​ លោក​​​ ហ៊ុន សែន ដែល​​​មាន​​​មុខ​​​​​​ក្នុង​​​ផ្ទាំង​​​ឃោសនា​​​របស់​​

By Zsombor Peter - July 30, 2013 Despite suffering a major hit in the parliamentary election Sunday, the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) will hold on to a majority of National Assembly seats for another five years should unofficial results released by the information minister stand. Under the country’s Constitution, a simple majority is all that is needed to form a government and pass most laws. But having relieved the CPP of its supermajority in Parliament, the opposition could make life very hard for Prime Minister Hun Sen, and for the first time turn the CPP-led Parliament into something more than a rubber stamp, analysts and legal experts said Monday. “ Now they have to deal with the opposition, they cannot do like before,” said Son Soubert , a former member of the country’s Con­stitutional Council, who recently allied with the opposition. With 123 seats in the Assembly, the CPP needed only 62 lawmakers to form the next government and says it won 68

By Reuters, AFP   The Cambodian People's Party has claimed electoral victory. The long-serving Prime Minister's Hun Sen 's party beat out seven other parties to retain control.  Hun Sen 's Cambodian People's Party (PPP) announced its victory in parliamentary elections on Sunday, saying it had won 68 of 123 seats. "We can say we've won this election," party spokesman Khieu Kanharith told the AFP news agency. Despite winning overall, with 55 parliamentary seats going to the opposition, the ruling party lost more than 20 seats in Sunday's election. The National Election Committee has not yet published figures, but the information minister posted the above figures on his Facebook page, noting that they were the final count. The leader of the opposition party, the Cambodia National Rescue Party 's (CNRP) Sam Rainsy, had announced a victory earlier but later withdrew the claim. Long reign Hun Sen, 60, has been

28 July 2013 Last updated at 15:50 GMT   BBC/News Asia   Cambodia's ruling party has claimed victory in Sunday's elections, but is likely to have a much reduced majority. The Cambodian People's Party (CPP) led by Prime Minister Hun Sen said it had won at least 68 seats, compared with 55 seats for the main opposition. Official results have not yet been released, but if these numbers are confirmed it would be the CPP's worst performance in 15 years.  Hun Sen has been in power in Cambodia for nearly three decades. His main challenge in the elections is from the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), led by Sam Rainsy, who recently came back to the country from self-imposed exile.  More than nine million people were eligible to vote, and results are expected later on Sunday. Unfair polls?   The CPP had been widely expected to win the election. The party enjoys considerable support in the countryside - in part

By Denise Hruby - July 27, 2013 On Sunday, the nation will largely divide into two camps: There will be those who think that the past 20 years have brought fi­nancial and political stability, infrastructure and new business opportunities—in short , overall development and prosperity. And there will be those who, despite the progress, see that the past two decades have brought rampant corruption , abuse of human rights, land grabbing and the concentration of pow­er and wealth in the political families of Mr. Hun Sen’s ruling CPP. The vote is expected to go the CPP’s way, giving Prime Minister Hun Sen another five years in pow­er, but independent analysts still believe that anything can happen.  –News Analysis “Among Cambodian observers, there are some who have inside knowledge and some who are armchair observers. Some say the CPP will win with a reduced majority, some say they [CPP and Cambodia National Rescue Party] are running neck-to-neck,” indep